Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 32, Number 304, Decatur, Adams County, 24 December 1934 — Page 7

SECOND ■ section

■any Varieties ■ Os Celebrations I Mark Christmas ■cut Variety of Celebrations Mark Christmas Ob- » servance In World; Holiday Is Essentially Euro- ■ pean In Origin; First Held By Gauls And Teu- ■ tons As Early As The Second Centurv; Churches ■ First Observe Birth Os Christ On December 25 ■ In 386 A. 1).

th< world over Iris a ■ vaiietv of celebration*. Es■iaiiy European i» its origin, it carried by Europeans to ■ pari* of the world in which satlh'd. and there has adapt■tself to local conditions. Hi .■ Christmas celebration modern lines were held a the Hauls and Teutons in Europe as early as the end ■he >nd century. Tills cohbln was natural >o these as it took the place of the K n rites in connection with tieof the days and the of the sun thst markied ■ time of the year. From these have conre many of the ■tonr.r which today still mark of t’hristmas. custhat had been carried over to feast day from the ■ pagan orgies. use of holly is one of these ■toms. Holly was used by tire ■an Germans to decorate their ■IM during the winter season a ■ras thought that this made it for the sylvan spirits to a refuge from the winter in their homes. Anotlh-i given for the use of ■y in Christmas decorations i■t It was adopted from ttyr old ■nan custom of decorating their Kes with this foliage during th • Kurnalia. todiay some interesting ■orstitions about holly remain in ■of-thie-way ’areas, in .England ■re are a number of those quaer Krstitions. The people of Rut

|pntpiipi^wetgteig»<ie»g | e , <’g'<!gTOe < « j g«- ! e^^ !^, < ! g | g jgstg:ig - g - ;gig!S!g,CTlgigig!gig;g(Sjg!S '' g<g!gwg!g!Sig ' ,g!g ' £^ig!g!g?g ' g I—' ~ ■ To Everyone our sincere wish at f J J H i this Joyous Season is - - I a e, a U!hHiVJi I¥RllnßKf \ a'? i^it GENERAL ELECTRIC CO. I —— — — m ? g f , ~ ^ !~^ g,gg^^^ ig^tgtg>gtgtS ' glgglgigigig!Sl€!^Slgtatgtg!g!gtg!gg,glgW!giglS,^ iglgtgtgtggtggStgCggtgggigiggigtg *

JWiezry Christmas To Each And Every One .DECATUR DAILY DEMOCRAT

land county consider it unlucky t<> introduce the plant into the house' until on Christmas eve, and in , elude the decorations of the rooms with holly in the Christmas eve festivities. In Derbyshire the smooth holly is considered feminine and the prickly holly mascu line. It the decorations are carried out with smooth holly, the wife will dominate the home during the i next year, and If the prickly holly Is used, the husband will dominate, in Herefordshire anil Worchester shire, the holly that has been used in the decoration of churches is accredited with bringing luck. Another old custom that conies from the Gauls and Teutons is the hanging of the mistletoe. This parasite was highly prized, especially among the Gauls, as a plant that brought health and fertility. The gathering of the mistletoe was a high religious rite among them in pagan days. Wassail, the spiced ale or wine used by the English to add merriment to the Christmas activities, probably dates from this time as well. Wassail is a corruption of an old English expression nueanints ‘ be of good health'' which was used in the generous toasts drank on Christmas in earlier days. In connection with this custom, the English also carried on the tradition of wassailing, in which a group i of young girls carry around a big bowl of wassail, decorated with I .ribbon and sprigs of rosemary. 1 from door to door, singing carols ... , ,

The Realization of a Child's Dream < a ' 4 w '. l ’’S y JF- " A loßßsE' * l w jB ' i 4 W MOT r/VS- -■ ■ ■ Lds \1- was. X . IFN ‘‘i.. ' vs hi ; - I kIHIk''■ I : ■■■~" t , , . c Lucky is tii.s utite girl, who is getting a fond embrace from good, old St. Nick himse I — r tl:? realization of many a child’s dream. Wh o wouldn’t like to be in her place?

in the meanwhile. ! vives Caroling is an old English cus- early tom which is also known to the tonic French as the Noel. that The word Yule, which still stir- This .-JL. —

Decatur, Indiana, Monday, December 24, 1934

s today, also dates from the y days. Yule was the old Tenc feast of the winter solstice was succeeded by Christmas, was considered the beginning

"■ " ~ E of the year by these people, ami t was a time of merriment and re- t jolcing. The practice of placing a I (CONTINUED ON PAGE TWO)

* Story Os First | Christmas Told In I Words Os Luke Luke 2:1-3 And it came to pass in those days, that, there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, every man Into his own city. 4-7 And Joseph also went up from I Galilee, out of the city of Nazar eth, Into Jndea, unto the city of 1 David, which is called Bethlehem, (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being i great with child. And so It was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered And she brought forth her firstborn son. and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for him in the inn. Luke 2:8-16 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And 10. the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone around about them; and they were sore a .raid. And the angel said unto them, "Fear not: for behold 1 bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God. and saying. "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, "Let us go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing uxiXTINUED ON PAGE TWO)

Child Jesus And Santa Claus Are Central Figures Spiritual Significance Os Christmas Observance Is Based Upon The Infant Jesus; Santa Claus, Or St. Nicholas, As He Is Properly Called, Typifies The Joy And Good Will Evidenced During the Holiday Season; Original St. Nicholas Was A Bishop.

The Iwo central figures tn the t traditional American celebration of i 'ChrlHtmas are the infant Jestia t and that cheery old soul, Santa ' Claus. 1 < Upon the first of these is based > I the spiritual significance of the c day, and around the latter is gath- t ered so much of the joy and good t will that makes Christmas appeal c to the hearts of young and old. r It was the Dutch settlers of New ( - York that introduced Santa Claus r to this country. They brought him from their home land, and except 8 for a few r«lnor changes, he’s still t the same, good-hearted, loving old f fellow he used to be. On his trip j across the ocean, ho changed his , clothes, traded his white ass for a | string of reindeer, and probably ( got even fatter than he already [ was. ’ i St. Nicholas, which Is his real name, had an especial appeal to t the Low Countries. In addition to | being a benevolent spirit, he was , also the patron saint of mariners, ( and there were many mariners In < the Low Countries. Through them j he has been introdmed to the , world. f The original St. Nicholas was a bishop of the fourth century. The , legend that connected him with , gifts is as follows: | A nobleman of Patara had three | daughters, but he was too poor to ( provide them with dowries. So they | were unable to marry. | | One night St. Nicholas, having heard of their difficulty, secretly

CHRISTMAS EDITION

took a bag of gold and hurled it through their 'window. The Jiag fell at the feet of the father, and was used as a dowry for the eldest daughter. The second night St. Nicholas returned, and there was a dowry for the second daughter. Ou the third night, after he had hurled the dowry for the youngest daughter through the window, the nobleman caught him and found out who he was. But St. Nicholas made him promise never to tell. In the Low Countries St. Nicholas day is still observed. On Christmas eve he makes a tour of palace and cottage, frequently visiting houses in his robe and with his staff and mitre. There he asks about the conduct of the children, giving praise or warning, and promising a reward on the following morning. In Holland the chimneys were not so large as they were in colo* ial New York, so St. Nicholas din not always make trips down the chimney. But he still used the chimney when he arrived, dropping the gifts down it. and into the shoes, plates, or baskets before the tire. The original Santa Claus drives a grey horse or a white ass. Sometimes he succeeds in entering a house and bringing his horse along. In these houses, hay and water. carrots, or even bread are left for the horse. If the child has been good, the horse will eat the food, (CONTINUED ON PAGE TWO) ■a . .sMia jMtk jttfhJtet U